Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Salary in the United States
The median annual wage for legal secretaries and administrative assistants in the U.S. is $55,570 ($26.72 per hour), according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 estimates.
- Median annual wage
- $55,570
- Mean annual wage
- $60,620
- Median hourly wage
- $26.72
- Employment
- 156,280
156,280 employed
Wage percentiles
| Percentile | Annual wage | Hourly wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $36,500 | $17.55 |
| 25th percentile | $44,450 | $21.37 |
| Median (50th) | $55,570 | $26.72 |
| 75th percentile | $71,970 | $34.60 |
| 90th percentile | $91,730 | $44.10 |
Highest-paying states for legal secretaries and administrative assistants
| State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $99,280 | 1,940 |
| New York | $72,230 | 9,800 |
| Connecticut | $66,220 | 1,090 |
| Delaware | $66,130 | 980 |
| Minnesota | $63,180 | 2,410 |
| New Jersey | $63,080 | 4,160 |
| Rhode Island | $63,020 | 390 |
| California | $62,860 | 27,470 |
| Massachusetts | $62,120 | 4,020 |
| Maryland | $61,440 | 1,670 |
Lowest-paying states
- Kansas: $36,620 median annual wage
- Missouri: $38,560 median annual wage
- Kentucky: $39,300 median annual wage
- Arkansas: $41,410 median annual wage
- Idaho: $41,880 median annual wage
About this occupation
Perform secretarial duties using legal terminology, procedures, and documents. Prepare legal papers and correspondence, such as summonses, complaints, motions, and subpoenas. May also assist with legal research.
Typical tasks
- Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.
- Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.
- Make travel arrangements for attorneys.
- Review legal publications and perform database searches to identify laws and court decisions relevant to pending cases.
- Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.
- Draft and type office memos.
Education of the current workforce — typical entry: High school diploma or equivalent
| Education level | Share of workers |
|---|---|
| Less than high school diploma | 1.5% |
| High school diploma or equivalent | 23.0% |
| Some college, no degree | 30.4% |
| Associate's degree | 19.8% |
| Bachelor's degree | 21.5% |
| Master's degree | 3.2% |
| Doctoral or professional degree | 0.7% |
Occupation profile data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Related occupations
- Customer Service Representatives$44,770
- Office Clerks, General$45,010
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive$47,540
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers$69,500
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks$50,670
- Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants$45,930
- Receptionists and Information Clerks$38,010
- Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks$45,260
About this data
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- CareerOneStop Occupation Profiles — data period 2026-08, retrieved August 14, 2026.
Figures are shown exactly as published by the source or derived by the documented formulas on our methodology page. Where a source suppresses an estimate, we show “—” rather than a substitute value.